Retired couple put neighbours 'under siege' in decade-long war over road access
A retired couple who created a “rural hell” for their neighbours over access to a country lane have been sentenced.
Stephen and Jacqueline Gee launched a decade-long campaign of harassment against Jason and Averil Little after they moved in next door in Dorset.
Mr Little, a decorated army major who won the Military Cross, and his wife were put “under siege” over the use of an access road between their two homes, Bournemouth Crown Court heard.
On Monday, Mr Gee, 68, was given a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years after admitting charges of harassment and breaching a restraining order, while Mrs Gee's 10-week sentence was suspended for a year.
The court heard Mr Gee had been given a restraining order to keep away from the Littles in 2018 after he was convicted of causing criminal damage to their outdoor swimming pool.
He was caught on CCTV wearing a balaclava and sneaking onto their property at night to slash the pool with a knife, flooding their garden.
Nigel Hall, prosecuting, told Bournemouth Crown Court: "Mr and Mrs Little moved into Milk House on Fairview Farm in 2012 with their two daughters.
"There is a track for access to their property which they shared with the defendant. There was a history of unpleasantness between them."
Mr Hall said Mr Gee allowed his resentment over the conviction to ferment for years until he began harassing the family again in 2020.
Mr Gee, a retired aircraft engineer, and his wife abused delivery drivers and visitors to their neighbour's home, telling one courier to “get the f*** off my land.”
They also blocked off their access with a gate and concrete bricks and made fake signs to misdirect visitors to their property in the hamlet of Puxey.
Mr Hall read a statement by Mrs Little in which she said her family felt like they were living in a "state of siege" and that the harassment had impacted her mental health.
Mary Aspinall-Miles and Richard Martin, defending the Gees, both argued that their clients had a "legitimate concern" about delivery drivers and visitors on the track that they own.
But Judge Richard Pawson said the couple had acted “disgracefully” and told them to grow up.
He subjected them both to an indefinite restraining order and they were also fined a total of £2,000 between them, plus a £3,000 victim surcharge.
Judge Pawson said: "You are both in your 60s. You have behaved disgracefully. I am not persuaded that there is a proper reason for the grievance you nurse.
He added: "It is the fact that the two of you, for reasons unknown, have developed an obsession with your law abiding neighbours.
"You have turned where you live into a rural hell. You both knew full well the impact of your actions and it is the reason you were so unpleasant.”
